New Leader for Institutional Research

Catherine Hackett Renner joined Grinnell College in early April as associate vice president for analytic support and institutional research. She comes to Grinnell with a strong background in research and planning, and more than 25 years of professional experience in higher education administration, teaching, and health care. 

In her new role, Renner will build upon Grinnell’s strategic emphasis on data-informed decision-making through support of administrative program analyses, teaching and learning outcomes assessment, and enrollment management data research. She will also provide administrative leadership to the staff members in the Office of Analytic Support and Institutional Research (OASIR).

Renner succeeds Randy Stiles as he transitions from his OASIR leadership role to the role of special adviser to the president. Stiles’s primary focus in that capacity will be on the upcoming Higher Learning Commission regional reaccreditation process. 

Prior to her position at Grinnell, Renner served as director of research for UnityPoint Health-Des Moines, assistant vice president for institutional research and planning at Mansfield University in Pennsylvania, and director of institutional research at the State University of New York-Geneseo, the liberal arts college of the New York public system.